Saybrook Outer Bar Channel, Connecticut

The Saybrook Outer Bar Channel is the end of the Connecticut River. It is maintained at sufficient depth to permit vessels into and out of the river from Long Island Sound. Otherwise the sediment from the river drops where it meets the ocean, and makes an extensive shallow bar. This obstacle to navigation is what kept the mouth of the Connecticut from developing a major port city, like at New Haven, New London, and Bridgeport. 70% of the fresh water coming into Long Island Sound comes out of the river here, along with the sediment and effluent form a watershed that extends to Canada.